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Every small business owner knows the importance of visual branding to establish a customer base. Your signs, logos, and banners determine how customers initially form an impression of your business, and small differences in seemingly mundane choices can greatly influence how the character of your business is perceived. Let’s look at four simple choices that can help make sure your customers see your business graphics the same way you do.

#1: Font Choice

The shape of the letters on your sign can significantly change a customer’s initial impression, as small a decision as that seems. Font choice for a restaurant, for example, can help indicate what kind of dining experience a customer might have inside. Contemporary, masculine fonts might indicate a more upscale array of menu choices, where an elegant font with a flowing, feminine tilt might indicate a more private, personal table experience. Friendly, bold fonts might indicate a casual and affordable dining experience. It’s all about using the power of suggestive design to steer the customer’s perception. With font choice, you’re doing that as they simply read the name of your business.

#2: Logo or No Logo?

For some businesses, a logo makes sense, for others, a more straightforward approach might work better. If you’re planning on expanding your business or providing a service that needs to stand out among competition, a logo is an excellent choice. It will help you solidify your image and further color a customer’s first impression of the business. Plus, it’ll make you more memorable: having a symbol associated with your business in the customer’s mind will make you easy to remember and more likely for you to be remembered as reputable. You can achieve the same effect by having a really memorable sign on your physical store, however, and by having a signature ‘look’ on your distributed documents, like business cards, or flyers and menus. It depends on whether you prefer an assertive or an understated look.

#3: Patterns or Pictures?

If you own a used car lot, would you want a picture of a car on your sign or a pattern of colors and shapes that suggest the speed and adventure people associate with cars? To put it another way, do you want to directly engage with your customer about the nature of your business or do you want to suggest it to them and have them understand it on their own? Using a picture is a great way to be eye-catching and stand out in the customer’s mind. But using clever visual design to give an impression lets the customer feel like they’re coming up with the idea on their own.

#4: Color Choices

Color choice is possibly the most important choice in making signage to establish your business identity. More than anything, and supplemental to everything, color conveys a huge amount of information to the customers. More than the use of individual colors, like red for excitement and blue for sophistication, the combination of colors used in a banner or sign come together to achieve a greater effect. A good balance of colors will be pleasing to the customer’s eye, making them more receptive. Clashing colors give the impression of low quality before they even read your sign. It’s a delicate balance, and something it’s often useful to seek help with.

If you live in the greater Seattle area, Digital Printing Services has been providing top-notch assistance to small business owners for fifteen years. From graphic design to printing services, they offer an array of services that makes it a one-stop experience for those looking to open or rebrand their business. Give them a call at (253) 214-3713 and get your business signage questions answered; and mention these special offers!